There is a quilt store near me that does rent their long arm. I am signed up to take the mandatory class in early Sept. I think it would be a good option for people who would like to learn to use a long arm and do their own quilts but do not have the money or the space to purchase one of their own. And for some, they may find they don't enjoy it and will be glad they did not have a huge cash outlay involved. As for me...I want to learn how to do it but, at the moment, I simply do not have the extra money to purchase my own. I'm the person who wants to get my quilt finished and I hate having to wait 3-6 months for another person to get to my quilt. I think taking the class and renting time on the machine will be a good option for me until I can afford one of my own.
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I wish you nothing but success on your venture, nothing lost nothing gained, I say go for it & have fun having your machines within your reach when you need them and helping people learn how to work the machines & then buying them from you. I truly hope you get this idea up and running! :thumbup:
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Sounds like a plan.....I'm too far away to be any use....but I would love something like this where I live.
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Originally Posted by Gramie bj
(Post 6853768)
I have to agree with Susie about how long it takes to do the quilting. I have a LA and my twin size quilts are on it minimum of 2 days for a simple edge to edge pattern, I do all free hand. That being said Having a shop like that would be great, a LA takes up a lot of floor space in the sewing room.
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Originally Posted by Pam B
(Post 6856079)
There is a quilt store near me that does rent their long arm. I am signed up to take the mandatory class in early Sept. I think it would be a good option for people who would like to learn to use a long arm and do their own quilts but do not have the money or the space to purchase one of their own. And for some, they may find they don't enjoy it and will be glad they did not have a huge cash outlay involved. As for me...I want to learn how to do it but, at the moment, I simply do not have the extra money to purchase my own. I'm the person who wants to get my quilt finished and I hate having to wait 3-6 months for another person to get to my quilt. I think taking the class and renting time on the machine will be a good option for me until I can afford one of my own.
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Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh, I would love having that option here. Good Luck, hope you get it up and running and it's a huge success.
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Originally Posted by MamaHen
(Post 6853653)
I'm thinking of starting a new business, the idea is to open a quilting shop (only long arm quilting supplies stocked), where customers could come & use the stores long arm machines to quilt their own quilts for a nominal fee. If something like this was available in your area, would you use it as opposed to sending your quilts out for hire??? Of course those wanting to use machines would have to go through a 3-4 hr class on use & then reserve time for the machines. This shop would also be a machine dealer offering machines for sale & travel to shows. I'm wondering if the need is out there & if the expense would be offset by the income. Not looking to make a killing, only enough to pay overhead. What do you all think? All opinions are welcome
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Originally Posted by MamaHen
(Post 6853653)
I'm thinking of starting a new business, the idea is to open a quilting shop (only long arm quilting supplies stocked), where customers could come & use the stores long arm machines to quilt their own quilts for a nominal fee. If something like this was available in your area, would you use it as opposed to sending your quilts out for hire??? Of course those wanting to use machines would have to go through a 3-4 hr class on use & then reserve time for the machines. This shop would also be a machine dealer offering machines for sale & travel to shows. I'm wondering if the need is out there & if the expense would be offset by the income. Not looking to make a killing, only enough to pay overhead. What do you all think? All opinions are welcome
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One reason I like renting time on the long arm is so I can say I made the whole quilt myself. The other, it's much cheaper to do it myself than send it out, at least in my area.
I pay $25.00 an hour, and the machine is a computerized (panto patterns) Gammill. The initial "training" was $150.00, and $29.95 for the zipper. They open at 10:00 a.m. and close at 3:00. They only book one person on each machine, per day. If your quilt is extra large (CA King) and can't finish by the time they close, they stay until you are done, which is nice. There's no pressure to finish. They don't make you take it off the frame and come back. There's a 3 hour minimum, and the price includes thread. She has batting available for purchase, on the roll, if you don't bring your own. It's lots of fun and I've met wonderful people there to socialize while I am quilting. I really like it. I can get a 78 x 88 done in 3 hours. Hope this helps. I say you should go for it. |
Can you survey the quilters in your specific area? Maybe through your guild. You need to know if that is a doable plan in your area. A lot of us out here would use it, but you need to know about the quilters in your area.
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